CARMEL – Trailing by nine with a little over two minutes to go in the third quarter Zionsville was in trouble in its IHSAA Sectional 8 semifinal with Fishers.
Just two weeks earlier the Tigers used a 21-2 closing run to earn a 52-45 win in Hoosier Crossroads play over the Eagles.
This time, Zionsville turned the tables.
Penn State-bound senior Logan Imes registered a career best 33 points, including 12 straight at one point as the Eagles earned an impressive 59-53 comeback win over Fishers to advance to the sectional final against Noblesville.
“I just knew I needed to be aggressive," Imes said. "It didn’t mean scoring, it just meant getting downhill and making plays. I felt that really made a spark and going into the fourth quarter we had some winning plays. Nick (Richart) had a big tip in, Drew (Snively) had a couple of big steals and Maguire (Mitchell) had some great defense and huge free throws too.”
Imes was the star of the night for the Eagles (15-8).
He finished the game going 10-16 from the floor and 10 of 11 from the free throw line, all while playing excellent defense against Fishers’ Jalen Haralson, the No. 9 nationally rated recruit in the 2025 class.
“I probably got away with a foul or two there are the end,” said Imes of his defense. “He’s a really great player. He’s one of the best in the country. I knew I had to stay down and concentrate on his drives because he had a lot of moves.”
Imes got the scoring going early with his first basket coming only 17 seconds into the game.
Things were relatively close throughout the first quarter, but Fishers took a 16-14 lead into the first break when Haralson hit a three with four seconds left in the period.
In the second quarter the Tigers (14-12) started to pull away a bit thanks to the efforts of Keenan Garner. G
arner scored 13 straight for Fishers at one point as the Tigers took a 33-24 lead with 2:15 left in the first half. Imes would keep Zionsville within striking distance as he scored on a three-point play with 2:04 left and Jackson Tielker hit a three-pointer to make it 36-30 at halftime.
“Garner hit those first two threes in the first half and he was really big on the offensive glass,” said Zionsville coach JR Howell. “He was a handful for us and Nick (Richart) got a few fouls early so that out us at a bit of a disadvantage."
Garner would finish with 17 and it was a pair of free throws from him that put Fishers in front 46-37 with 2:03 to play.
That is when Imes took the game over.
He would score the final seven points of the third quarter with two driving baskets and a three to make it 46-44 going into the final eight minutes. He then tied the game with a pair of free throws early in the final period and made it 49-46 as part of a personal 12-0 run with a free throw at the 4:47 mark.
Aidan Zimmer broke the run and tied the game with a three with 4:39 left, but Tielker scored on a nice assist from Imes 19 seconds later to give the Eagles the lead for good.
Richart would get a tip-in with 2:56 left that made it 53-49 Zionsville.
Fishers would get as close as 55-53 when Haralson hit two free throws with 52.9 seconds left, but Mitchell connected on two free throws with 38.4 seconds left and after a Fishers turnover Imes salted the game away with two more at the 14.5 second mark.
Tielker was essential to Zionsville’s success with 11 points, including a trio of timely three-pointers. Haralson finished with 17, but the defense of Imes bottles him up most of the night after he had 22 in the first meeting.
Zionsville will go for its first sectional crown in four years against Noblesville Saturday night.
The Millers won the regular season meeting 37-35.
Commented
Sorry, there are no recent results for popular commented articles.